2. SONGWRITER (AKA MUSIC PUBLISHING)
INCOME STREAMS
In today’s world your songs can generate money and royal-
ties via the traditional “Physical/Analog” music industry or
the new “Digital” music industry. There are in fact a minimum
of 13 different and specific ways that you as a songwriter can
make money off of your songs.
Note – each income stream and type of royalty is generated
from both the original recording of a song (i.e. the Beatles’
version of Paul McCartney’s song “Yesterday”) or off of a
cover of the song (i.e. if multiple artists cover the song, the
song becomes an “x” factor multiplier for revenue and royal-
ties). In the case of “Yesterday,” there are over 25,000 cov-
ers, and each version of the song can generate money for the
songwriter in many different ways.
Below, these royalty and income types are broken out into
two categories:
• Physical/Analog Songwriter
Royalties and Revenue
• Digital Songwriter Royalties
and Revenue
Simply stated, these are most of the
different ways you make money as a
songwriter.

3. PHYSICAL/ANALOG SONGWRITER
ROYALTIES AND REVENUE
INCOME TYPE:
MECHANICAL ROYALTIES
description:
A royalty generated from the “Reproduction”
copyright. This royalty is owed to the songwriter for
each and every unit sold and/or manufactured for
physical product – i.e.: LP, CD, cassette, USB stick, etc.
who/what generates and pays this royalty:
Record companies or any other entity manufacturing a physical
product (i.e. Victoria’s Secret, The Gap, W Hotel, Putamayo, etc.)
that contains a songwriter’s song on it (either his/her own
recording of the song or someone else’s cover of that song).
amount owed to the songwriter:
• In the United States: $0.091 per reproduction of a song. If it’s
over five minutes, a formula rate kicks in. The U.S. Government
sets the rate.
• Outside of the United States: There is no government-mandated
rate, however, the royalty rate is typically 8% - 10% of the list price
(varies by country).
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4. INCOME TYPE:
“ANALOG” PUBLIC PERFORMANCE ROYALTIES
description:
A royalty generated from the “Public Performance” of the copy-
right. This royalty is owed to the songwriter for each individual
“Public Performance” of a song.
Side note:
Under U.S. law, a public performance occurs when music is played in:
(1) A place open to the public where there is a substantial number of persons,
outside of a gathering of family and friends (like a live gig); or (2) the perfor-
mance is transmitted to such a place (like being in a bar watching the live
gig happening somewhere else); or (3) the performance is transmitted so that
members of the public can receive the performance at the same or different
places, at the same or different times (like being at home and watching the
gig on the internet).
who/what generates and pays this royalty:
AM/FM radio, network television, cable television, live gigs (i.e.
when you play live, the venue must pay for the public performance
of the song regardless of if it’s an original version or a cover of a
song), airplanes, retail stores, bars, restaurants, salons, offices,
elevators, telephone hold music, movie theaters outside of the
U.S. (for example, each time the movie Titanic played, Celine Dion
was paid by the movie theaters for the public performance of her
song), grocery stores, shopping malls, etc.
amount owed to the songwriter:
In both the United States and outside the United States there is
no government rate. Instead, there is a one-to-one negotiation
between the Performing Rights Organization (PRO) and the other
entity. However, governments tend to have “Rate” judges oversee
these rates to assure they do not get unreasonable. These govern-
ment entities can adjust rates.
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5. INCOME TYPE:
SYNCHRONIZATION LICENSE ROYALTIES
description:
A royalty generated from the “Distribution” copyright. A one-time
license payment is made to the songwriter, allowing the synchroni-
zation and distribution of a song (either the original recording or a
cover version) with a moving image (i.e. a song in a movie, TV show,
commercial, DVD, video game, etc.).
who/what generates and pays this royalty:
Film studios, TV studios, production companies, ad agencies, video
game companies, etc.
amount owed to the songwriter:
In both the United States and outside the United States there is
no government rate. The license fee is a one-to-one negotiated
amount usually based on length of use, if it’s in the back-
ground or up front, the territory, the format, and the
popularity of the TV show. The range can be from a few
hundred dollars to hundreds of thousands of dollars.
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6. INCOME TYPE:
MECHANICAL SYNCHRONIZATION ROYALTIES
description:
A royalty generated from the “Reproduction” copyright. A per
unit royalty payment based on number of units manufactured that
includes the song (either the original recording or a cover) in a
greeting card, toy, video game, etc.
who/what generates and pays this royalty:
Hallmark, various toy companies, video distributors, video game
companies, record companies, etc.
amount owed to the songwriter:
In both the United States and outside the United States there is
no government rate per unit based on the product. The royalty is
usually paid based on initial manufactured units.
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7. INCOME TYPE:
PRINT ROYALTIES
description:
A royalty generated from the “Public Display” copyright. Either a
one-time or per unit payment based on the printing of lyrics, sheet
music, tablature, etc.
who/what generates and pays this royalty:
Hal Leonard, Alfred Music Publishing as well as various magazines
(i.e. Guitar Player showing tabs for a song), books, etc. On rare
occasion, a hotel (or other entity) may have a lyric quoted (like the
Hard Rock Hotel), and in this case the hotel pays. If the lyrics
appear on a t-shirt, the entity making the t-shirt pays a royalty.
amount owed to the songwriter:
In both the United States and outside the United States there is
no government rate. It’s a one-to-one negotiation. For sheet music,
it is usually 15% of retail price, and/or a one-time fee for pressing is
also often negotiated.
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8. DIGITAL SONGWRITER
ROYALTIES AND REVENUE
INCOME TYPE:
DIGITAL DOWNLOAD MECHANICAL ROYALTIES
description:
A royalty generated from the “Reproduction” and “Distribution”
copyrights. This royalty is owed to the songwriter for each and
every unit downloaded.
who/what generates and pays this royalty:
Any download music services: i.e. iTunes, Amazon, Google, Beat-
port, Spotify, Rhapsody, Zune, Verizon, etc., as well as any “direct
to fan” sales (i.e. RootMusic, TopSpin, etc.).
amount owed to the songwriter:
It works the same as physical reproductions.
• In the United States: $0.091 per reproduction of a song. If it’s
over five minutes, a formula rate kicks in. The U.S. Government
sets the rate.
• Outside of the United States: There is no government-mandated
rate, however, the royalty rate is typically 8% - 10% of the list price
(varies by country).
Important Note – outside of the U.S., the digital music services
need both the right of Reproduction and the right of Public Perfor-
mance to allow a song to be downloaded. Therefore, the local PRO
and/or collection agency bundle these two rights together and
usually charge 8% - 10% of the list price (varies by country).
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9. INCOME TYPE:
STREAMING MECHANICAL ROYALTIES
description:
A royalty generated from the “Reproduction” copyright. This
royalty is owed to the songwriter for each and every stream of
his/her song via an “interactive” streaming service (“interactive”
means the user can choose his/her songs, stop, go backwards, go
forwards, create custom playlists, etc., with no restrictions).
who/what generates and pays this royalty:
Any interactive digital music service: Rhapsody, Spotify, Rdio,
Deezer, Simfy, Zune, Mog, MySpace Music, Nokia, Slacker, etc.
amount owed to the songwriter:
• In the United States: A government mandated rate of 10.5% of
Gross Revenue minus the cost of “Public Performance” (at the
moment, the average rate per stream is about $0.005. Note – this
rate has increased rapidly over the past two years and is expected
to continue to grow).
• Outside of the United States: There is no government-mandated
rate. The royalty rate is typically 8% - 10% of the list price.
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10. INCOME TYPE:
DIGITAL NON-INTERACTIVE “STREAMING” PUBLIC
PERFORMANCE ROYALTIES
description:
A royalty generated from the “Public Performance” copyright
(also known as the “Right of Communication”). This royalty is owed
to the songwriter for each individual “Public Performance” of a
song via the internet or any other digital source (cable, satellite)
via a “non-interactive” digital service (“non-interactive” means the
user cannot pick songs, create playlists, go backwards, see what
song is playing next, etc. Think of it like AM/FM radio).
who/what generates and pays this royalty:
Pandora, Slacker, LastFM, iHeartRadio, Sirius XM Satellite Radio,
cable companies, any radio simulcast on the Net (about 3,000+
entities in the U.S., thousands more outside of the U.S.).
amount owed to the songwriter:
In both the United States and outside the United States there is
no government rate. There is a one-to-one negotiation between
the Performing Rights Organization (PRO) and the other entity.
The rate they charge the entity is usu-
ally based on a % of its Gross Revenue.
Then the PRO uses its own formulas
and methods to calculate how much the
songwriter gets paid.
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11. INCOME TYPE:
INTERACTIVE “STREAMING” PUBLIC PERFORMANCE
ROYALTIES
description:
A royalty generated from the “Public Performance” copyright
(also known as the “Right of Communication”). This royalty is owed
to the songwriter from each individual “Public Performance” of
a song via the Internet or any other digital source (cable, satel-
lite) via an “interactive” service (“interactive” means the user can
choose his/her songs, stop, go backwards, go forwards, create
custom playlists, etc., with no restrictions).
who/what generates and pays this royalty:
YouTube, Spotify, Rhapsody, Rdio, Deezer, Simfy, MySpace Music,
any other telecom and/or subscription streaming music service
anywhere in the world. Also applies to on-line gaming (i.e. Mafia
Wars, etc.).
amount owed to the songwriter:
In both the United States and outside the United States there is
no government rate. There is a one-to-one negotiation between
the Performing Rights Organization (PRO) and the other entity.
The rate they charge the entity is usually based on a % of its Gross
Revenue. Then the PRO uses its own formulas and methods to
calculate how much the songwriter gets paid.
Important note – outside of the U.S., the digital music services need
both the right of Reproduction and the right of Public Performance
to use a song in an interactive streaming service. Therefore, the lo-
cal PRO and/or collection agency bundle these two rights together
and usually charge 8% - 10% of the list price (varies by country).
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12. INCOME TYPE:
DIGITAL SYNCHRONIZATION LICENSE
description:
A royalty generated from the “Distribution” and “Reproduction”
copyrights. A per use license payment to synchronize a song (ei-
ther the original recording or a cover version) with a moving image
(i.e. YouTube, Vimeo, etc.).
who/what generates and pays this royalty:
Primarily sites like YouTube and Vimeo that have “User Generated
Content” (aka UGC), although artists can upload their own videos.
amount owed to the songwriter:
In both the United States and outside the Unit-
ed States there is no government rate. There is
a one-to-one negotiation that sets the per use
royalty rate. It’s typically a % of Net Revenue as
generated by advertising dollars.
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13. INCOME TYPE:
DIGITAL PRINT
description:
A royalty generated from the “Public Display” copyright. Either a
one-time or per unit payment based on the display of lyrics, sheet
music and tablature on websites, apps, etc. (this includes avatars
with virtual t-shirts).
who/what generates and pays this royalty:
On-line lyric websites, musician websites, websites with avatars,
digital version websites of magazines, etc.
amount owed to the songwriter:
In both the United States and outside the United States there is
no government rate. The royalty is typically a fee for a Term (pe-
riod of time) and/or a % of the Gross Revenue from the site (paid
subscriptions, advertising).
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14. INCOME TYPE:
MECHANICAL ROYALTY FOR A
RINGTONE/RINGBACK TONE
description:
A royalty generated from the “Reproduction” and “Distribution”
copyrights. A royalty is owed from the purchase of a ringtone/ring-
back tone for mobile devices.
who/what generates and pays this royalty:
Telecoms (AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, Cricket, Vodafone, etc.) and
music services.
amount owed to the songwriter:
• In the United States it is $0.24 per ringtone.
• Outside of the United States, there is no
government rate set. It is a % of Gross Revenue.
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15. INCOME TYPE:
PUBLIC PERFORMANCE ROYALTY FOR A
RINGTONE/RINGBACK TONE
description:
A royalty generated from the “Public Performance” copyright. A
royalty owed for the public performance that occurs with the play
of a ringtone/ringback tone.
who/what generates and pays this royalty:
Telecoms (AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, Cricket, Vodafone, etc.) and
music services.
amount owed to the songwriter:
In both the United States and outside the United States there is
no government rate. It’s a one-to-one negotiation.
IMPORTANT TUNECORE LINKS TO CHECK OUT
TuneCore.com (Distribution)
TuneCore.com/Songwriter (TuneCore Songwriter Service)
TuneCore.com/Copyright (Free Guides, Videos, Articles)
blog.tunecore.com
facebook.com/TuneCore
@TuneCore
YouTube.com/TuneCore
Pinterest.com/TuneCore
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